The present invention relates to a bearer plate for use with rock bolts or friction rock stabilisers and in particular to a bearer plate having an increased compression resistance for a given material thickness.
Bearer plates, also commonly known as face plates or rock plates, are used with various types of rock bolts or friction rock stabilisers, to bind together rock strata to stabilise the rock formation and inhibit its collapse. The bearer plates act to distribute the load applied by the bolt. The bolts and bearer plates in combination have application in mines, rock cuttings, tunnels and any other excavations where stabilisation of the rock strata is required.
Whilst a wide variety of different bearer plates are available, it has previously been necessary to use relatively heavy gauge materials to achieve the load ratings required. This adds not only to the material cost, but also to the production cost in terms of the cost of tooling and press capacity required to make the plates.